If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. I John 1:9 God is a forgiving God. God extends the gift of forgiveness to us, asking us to receive it as a gift. Not glibly, as if nothing has happened. Not proudly as if we have earned this gift. But with godly sorrow and humility we are asked to receive the gift of forgiveness … [Read more...] about Receiving Forgiveness as Prayer
Repenting and Making Amends as Prayer
“The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!” Mark 1:5 Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount. Luke 19:8 A life of prayer includes acts of repentance and making amends. To repent is to feel so much … [Read more...] about Repenting and Making Amends as Prayer
Having a Broken and Contrite Heart as Prayer
You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it, you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise. Psalm 51:16-17 Prayer is being broken-hearted and contrite before God. The more we become aware of our shortcomings and character flaws, the more our hearts open in empathy and sorrow for those we … [Read more...] about Having a Broken and Contrite Heart as Prayer
Confession as Prayer
I said, O Lord, have mercy on me; heal me, for I have sinned against you. Psalm 41:4 Prayer is sometimes confession. It is the acknowledgment of our short comings, our missing the mark, our moral failings. Confession is also the acknowledgment of our longing to change, our longing to be healed and our longing to be set free to love God and others. When we confess to God, we throw ourselves on … [Read more...] about Confession as Prayer
Taking Inventory as Prayer
Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. Psalm 139:23-24 We are often blind to our own failings. We do not see our prideful motives or greedy ways. We do not understand how our choices and behaviors are hurting others. We may not even be aware of the fears and anxieties that … [Read more...] about Taking Inventory as Prayer
Honesty as Prayer
Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Surely you desire truth in the inner parts; you teach me wisdom in the inmost place. Psalm 51: 1,6 Prayer is not a performance. It is not an attempt to impress God. Prayer is honest communication. Transparency is the cornerstone of intimacy in any … [Read more...] about Honesty as Prayer
Going to the Doctor as Prayer
While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and “sinners” came and ate with him and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and “sinners”? On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice. For I … [Read more...] about Going to the Doctor as Prayer
Receiving the Fullness of God as Prayer
I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power… to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Ephesians 3: 17-19 As we fall like a seed into the ground and die to our self-reliance and self-serving ways, the true life God created in us is … [Read more...] about Receiving the Fullness of God as Prayer
Dying as Prayer
I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. John 12:24 Prayer awakens us. Prayer is a source of conscious contact with the One who is Life itself. So how is it that prayer is also the experience of dying? What might it mean that prayer leads us to fall, like a kernel of wheat, into the ground … [Read more...] about Dying as Prayer
Becoming Like Little Children as Prayer
At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? He called a little child and had him stand among them. And he said: I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 18:14 This story … [Read more...] about Becoming Like Little Children as Prayer